PUBLIC RELATIONS AND THE BANKING INDUSTRY IN NIGERIA: AN EVALUATIVE STUDY OF SELECTED BANKS IN ENUGU
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Public relations is the task of goodwill creation directed in building harmony between an organization and its environment through mutual understanding based on truth and full information. “It is the deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organization and its public, (Anyafo, 1999). Public relations is aimed at winning the co-operations, it has to evolve and implement programmes of action which will serve both the public interest and the organizational interest.
Accordingly, the function of public relations is directed towards developing and encouraging attitudes and behaviour, which will nurture the seeds of mutual understanding and assist their strong and healthy growth. Haywood (1984) and Nwosu (1996), share the view that public relations encourages pursuance of positive steps to achieve good will, that is, implementation of strategies that could ensure a cordial business and social rapport with the various public relations encourages the building of corporate reputation. PR advocates elimination of practice which through legitimate, may offend public opinion or jeopardize mutual understanding.
Thornton (1964) asserts that a concern for public relations is a prerequisite of optimum growth in banking as in any other business. Specially, according to Anyafor (1999) the general role of PR in a bank may be summarized as follows:-
- To project a good image for the bank.
- To promote the service/products of the bank
- To establish mutual understanding between the bank and its present and prospective customer.
- To identify and execute activities/projects that would, in general enhance the banks good corporate citizenship.
- To serve as an instrument of a two way communication channel between the bank and the relevant public such that issues of public interest that impinge on the bank’s operations are fully monitored.
- To furnish the bank with information of government expectations/regulations in a timely and/or anticipatory basis. To predict and analyze public opinion trends and hence advise management from time to time on their implications.
- To identify and implement strategies that would enable the bank to sociaize with the immediate host community and
- Implement planned programmes of actions which will service both the bank and the public interests.
The above roles may collectively be referred to as Financial Public Relations activities (FPR). As a specialized arm of public relations management, FRP has the functional responsibility of communication with that public whose policies and activities affect the financial, industrial and commercial direction of business (Monu, 1987:14).
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS
All scientific research is necessitated by perceived problem. As such, the desire and quest to set out and research on the topic “public relations and the banking industry in Nigeria”.
It is a common knowledge that Nigerian banking system has, over the years been experiencing a crisis of confidence, a situation in which customers doubt the integrity of t he banking
system in delivering the financial intermediation services. Under such circumstances, has a public relations play any role towards the restoration of mutual confidence between the operators in the financial system and the relevant publics?
Loss of confidence in banking and financial system is a major consequence of bank distress.
